USDA suspends scholarship program at historically Black colleges, website shows

By Leah Douglas

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Agriculture has suspended a college scholarship program for students from rural and underserved backgrounds who attend historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), according to the program website.

The 1890 scholars program aims to increase the number of agriculture students at the country's 19 historically Black land-grant universities, which are federally funded and tend to have significant agricultural programs.

The website for the program now has a banner saying it is "suspended pending further review."

The USDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday. The administration of President Donald Trump has issued sweeping executive orders rescinding federal diversity and inclusion efforts.

The program provides full tuition, room and board to participants, and the agency spent $19.2 million on scholarships for 94 students in 2024, according to the USDA website.

"This is a clear attack on an invaluable program that makes higher education accessible for everybody," said Representative Alma Adams of North Carolina, who founded and co-chairs a congressional HBCU caucus, in a statement.

"This program is a correction to a long history of racial discrimination within the land-grant system, not an example of it."

It was not immediately clear when the program was suspended. The website banner noting the program's suspension has been on the program site since at least February 16, according to a Reuters review of archived versions of the pages.

(Reporting by Leah Douglas; Editing by Richard Chang)